1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for the production of chlorates and derivative chemicals from ammonium perchlorate as a starting material. Ammonia is produced in a first step wherein a metal hydroxide is reacted with ammonium perchlorate to produce ammonia and a metal perchlorate. If the metal hydroxide used is sodium hydroxide, sodium perchlorate is formed. The ammonia generated is recovered and sent to a reformer to produce hydrogen which is used to fuel a fuel cell that generates water and electrical energy to run an electrochemical reactor where the metal perchlorate is converted to a metal chlorate and derivative chemicals.
2. Description of Related Art
The perchlorate anion (ClO4−) has been found in water supplies throughout the southwestern United States. The primary source of this perchlorate is from the release of ammonium perchlorate to the environment. The primary use of ammonium perchlorate is as a propellant which generates controlled propulsion of a rocket or projectile during flight. Ammonium perchlorate, as a solid fuel for rocket motors, is ideal for military applications since it is stable, can be stored almost indefinitely, and is denser than liquid fuels yielding more compact systems. In fact, the space shuttle is the largest consumer of ammonium perchlorate in which each set of space shuttle solid rocket motors use approximately 1.7 million pounds of the propellant. The other large user of ammonium perchlorate is the U.S. military in which the propellant is used in virtually every solid-fueled tactical and strategic missile in the inventory. In 1998, the EPA added perchlorate to the Contaminated Candidate List for drinking water. Currently the EPA is overseeing the clean-up of a variety of contaminated sites in states such as Nevada, California, Arizona, and Texas. From a health standpoint the perchlorate ion, which is similar in size to the iodide ion, can be taken up by the mammalian thyroid gland. As a result, the perchlorate ion can disrupt the production of thyroid hormones and hence disrupt metabolism. Therefore, there is a need for processes that are able to reduce the amount of perchlorate introduced into the environment.
This invention addresses the perchlorate problem from a demilitarization standpoint. The United States Department of Defense maintains that there are no feasible technologies available to completely address the perchlorate problem through the chemical processing of ammonium perchlorate. Current demilitarization practices only recover and reuse the perchlorate without any attempt to convert it to any other chemical moiety. This invention relates to a chemical process by which ammonium perchlorate, recovered from weapons systems, can be chemically converted to commodity chemicals and used commercially. This approach completes the life cycle of a weapons systems in which an environmentally unfriendly chemical is converted to chemicals that have significant commercial value.